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Scholarship as Conversation Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education

Introduction to Scholarship as Conversation

Scholarship as Conversation is one of six core information literacy concepts highlighted in the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education (ACRL, 2016). For a quick introduction to Scholarship as Conversation, watch the following video:

The transcript for this video is available: Scholarship as Conversation.

Concept Description

Communities of scholars, researchers, or professionals engage in sustained discourse with new insights and discoveries occurring over time as a result of varied perspectives and interpretations.

Scholars, researchers, and professionals within a field engage in ongoing discussions in which ideas and research findings are continually being shared, debated, challenged, expanded, accepted, or rejected. These "conversations" take place through scholarly or scientific journal articles, books, conferences, reports or white papers, and even through social media. Experienced researchers understand that, while there are some topics for which accepted answers have been established through this process, in most cases there are often multiple competing perspectives on a topic or question. They recognize sources as "voices" within this conversation, and know that a single source cannot be taken to represent the only or final word on a topic.

Experienced researchers are able to locate, navigate, comprehend, and contribute to the conversations within their discipline or field. They also recognize that providing appropriate attribution to relevant previous research is an obligation of participating in this conversation.

Novice researchers may not be familiar with the idea of scholarship as an ongoing conversation, or may not know how to locate the conversation(s) relevant to their topic. They may also have difficulty recognizing that they are expected to contribute to the conversation, or to see themselves as capable of doing so. Novices may also need to learn the "language" and conventions of the conversation (for example, how sources are incorporated, the type of attributions used, and how scholars refer to each other) before they are able to fully participate.

Knowledge Practices

As students develop their understanding of this concept, here are some of the practices and skills they should develop:

  • Cite the contributing work of others in their own research and creative work
  • Identify barriers to entering scholarly conversations
  • Critically evaluate contributions made by others to the ongoing conversation(s)
  • Recognize the contribution that particular articles, books, and other scholarly pieces make to disciplinary knowledge
  • Summarize the changes in scholarly perspective over time on a particular topic within a specific discipline
  • Recognize that a given scholarly work may not represent the only or even the majority perspective on the issue
  • Contribute to scholarly conversation at an appropriate level

Dispositions

As students develop their understanding of this concept, here are some of the habits or dispositions they should develop:

  • Recognize that scholarly conversations take place through various venues and seek out conversations taking place in their research area
  • Recognize they are often entering into an ongoing scholarly conversation and not a finished conversation
  • Suspend judgment on the value of a particular piece of scholarship until the larger context for the scholarly conversation is better understood
  • Start to see themselves as contributors to scholarship rather than only consumers of it
  • Understand the responsibilities that comes with entering the conversation
  • Recognize that not having a fluency in the language and process of a discipline may disempower their ability to participate and engage

To read the description of this concept in the Framework, go to: Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education.

Credits: This page was created by the Ohio State University Libraries. The Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education was published by the Association of College & Research Libraries. Some sections of the Framework have been copied verbatim, but others have been modified. Images are licensed from Adobe Stock, including: Business seminar speaker doing presentation and professional training about marketing, sales and e-commerce by Julia Tim; Print Book Publishing House Flat Composition Set by macro vector.